1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to receiving and playing a broadcast program while listening to other program content in a prestored format.
2. Background Information
Drivers often receive traffic, weather and/or other informational reports while listening to the radio in their vehicle. When drivers are listening to live radio broadcast programming, the timing of such informational reports is usually not important since the driver is listening to whatever broadcast program is being transmitted at that given instant from the radio station. That is, since the radio station controls the broadcast programming, the radio station also controls when to broadcast informational reports and if (and when) to interrupt the station's live broadcast programming to do so. However, many drivers prefer listening to prerecorded music or other material instead of live broadcast programming. To accommodate this class of radio consumer, radio stations have historically aired traffic and weather reports at specific, designated times, thereby allowing drivers to switch from either another radio station or the prerecorded programming to the radio station airing the informational report at the designated time so the driver is able to listen to the report. Subsequent technology (such as that supported by Blaupunkt automobile radio receivers) has allowed radio stations to include an inaudible signal(s) with the broadcast programming including the informational report, whereby the driver's radio receiver, upon detecting the inaudible signal from the station to which it is tuned, turns off (or otherwise temporarily disables) the tape or compact disc (“CD”) player, and selects the radio to be played so that the driver can listen to the live informational report being broadcast from the station.
Both types of technology have been unacceptable to drivers. In the first instance, the driver must pay attention to the time and appropriate station on which the informational report will be broadcast, while also paying attention to the road and the prerecorded programming. Furthermore, if the driver forgets to tune in to the appropriate station at the designated time, the driver will miss the potentially important content of the informational report. Using the automatic interrupt technology (e.g., Blaupunkt), the prerecorded program to which the driver is listening is automatically interrupted to receive and play the incoming informational report at what may be an inopportune time to disrupt the driver's prerecorded programming.
The present invention allows the user to listen to traffic, weather and other informational reports at natural breaks in the prerecorded programming that the driver is listening to.